Thought excercise: If the Contessa 26...

A great question Adrian, with that said I have to disagree with you on one point that is the idea of a sliding companion way. The solid hump or bubble entry way is one of the features I like about  my boat. It does the following
Adds to the clean line of the boat
Provides a solid deck
Contributes to a more water tight cabin

I can certainly see how many would disagree with me, but personally I say keep it the way it is.

As to what I would like to see changed, a couple of things.
1) A thru deck, keel stepped mast, although cabin size may prevent this. Many of the older
    Co26’s I have seen have soft decks in part, I believe, because of the deck stepped mast.
2) Larger hardware ie winches cleats etc
3) A larger(more powerful) less noicy engine
4) I agree that a deck accessed anchor locker would be a step in the right direction.

5) This last point gets away from your question but I would love to see the same basic boat, keeping its
    relative dimensions but at least 2-3 feet longer. This would  provide for a truly solid single handed
    ocean crossing boat , I have never used mine to cross  an ocean but I suspect it’s small cabin size
    (storage) and overall weight, as it is currently, would be its weak spot.  In other words something to
    match up against the old pearson triton or the alberg 30.

John from Kingston

Some of the things mentioned were already incorporated into the newer model JJTs...

There is an anchor locker, deck accessable, with an overboard drain...
Hardware was upgraded somewhat, in that an anchor roller and a second substantial foredeck cleat were added and the cabin ports were all upgraded to quality metal opening ones...
The cabintop "hump" was extended a bit...
I believe the liner mold was changed to lower the sole slightly for a bit more headroom, but not positive on this one...
The ventilation was improved by adding the midships hatch...
Tankage was moved lower, from beneath settees to an integral keel tank...

While I like the structural/strength contributions of no sliding hatch, I too would prefer a QUALITY sliding hatch WITH A SEA HOOD, as this would allow a bridgedeck or at least a 10-12" sill in the companionway.  I see the lack of any sill or bridgedeck as one of the biggest minuses of the Contessa design.

I'd like to see a good traveler on the aft deck.  I'm not sure there's room with a dodger (and possibly a midships hatch) to get decent leverage on the boom with a cabintop traveler.  Sheeting that close to the mast leads to either more parts in the mainsheet purchase, or bigger diameter lines and a bigger winch, plus the whole issue of strengthening the cabintop...

I'd like to bolt the cockpit sole down securely (but not permanently) and add a large access hatch to get at the stuffing box, reverse gear, control cables and the aft side of the engine in general.  I am seriously considering this change myself.

I love a quarterberth at sea.  There's no place cozier to crawl into after watch, especially with a sea running.  Got to have at least one.

This idea is pure speculation and might not work for everyone (especially Adrian's family ) but I'd like to see the Contessa not pretend to be a big boat but capitalize on her strengths as a solid offshore boat for one or two.  Eliminate the V berth and use the space for a decent wet locker, a head, and storage.  Move the galley aft to the port side of the companionway, with a quarterberth on the stbd side.  (This would give a bigger cockpit locker portside as well).  Two settees (bunks) with bunkboards fitted) in the salon midships, one of which could slide out to a double in port.  How about a a fold down chart table above the quarterberth or over the aft end of the stbd settee?  Maybe a sturdy table that drops down from the fwd bulkhead?

That will certainly stir up some thoughts!  Maybe Cody will come up with a creative interior for his boat as he's got an empty hull to start with!

Bilgeret, My boat also came with the standard 152 screws holding down the engine hatch cover. I converted to a system that my father used on the Contessa he used to own (hull #61). It only requires 3 bolts to be undone to remove the entire hatch. Since I always keep a coreless drill on board, I only takes about 20 seconds to remove it. But since I installed the new Yanmar it does not need removed in emergency mode anymore. I will post some photos in the spring if you are interested. It is really not too difficult of a modification.

We have somewhere between 12 and 18 screws that hold down the cockpit sole. It's a bit of a trial to get at the engine, but more because I have to find somewhere convenient to store the cockpit grate and panel.